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o produce its kind is a and (ii) sexual reproduction. In asexual
characteristic of all living reproduction plants can give rise to new
organisms. You have already plants without seeds, whereas in sexual
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learnt this in Class VI. The production reproduction, new plants are obtained
of new individuals from their parents is from seeds.
known as reproduction. But, how do
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plants reproduce? There are different
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modes of reproduction in plants which Paheli thought that new
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we shall learn in this chapter. plants always grow from seeds.
12.1 MODES
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OF REPRODUCTION But, she has never seen the seeds
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of sugarcane, potato and rose. She
In Class VI you learnt about different
wants to know how these plants
parts of a flowering plant. Try to list the
reproduce.
various parts of a plant and write the
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ed
Fig. 12.2 Potato plant sprouting from an eye
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of a potato, each with an eye and bury
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them in the soil. Water the pieces
Node
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regularly for a few days and observe
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Bud in
the axil
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134 SCIENCE
multiply every few hours if sufficient
nutrients are made available to them.
Remember that yeast is a single-celled
organism. Let us see how they reproduce?
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give rise to new plants. Sweet potato and Take a pinch of yeast and place it in a
dahlia are examples. container with some water. Add a
Plants such as cacti produce new spoonful of sugar and shake to dissolve
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plants when their parts get detached it. Keep it in the warm part of a room.
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from the main plant body. Each After an hour, put a drop of this liquid
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detached part can grow into a new
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plant. microscope. What do you observe? You
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may see the formation of new yeast cells
(Fig. 12.5).
Boojho wants to know if Chain of buds
Developing bud
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or pieces grow into new individuals
(Fig. 12.6). This process continues and
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they cover a large area in a short period (Spore forming
of time.
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bodies)
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Fig. 12.8 Reproduction through spore formation
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like mesh on the bread. When spores
are released they keep floating in the
air. As they are very light they can cover
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Hypha
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Activity 12.4 Both the male and the female unisexual
flowers may be present in the same plant
Take a mustard/china rose/petunia
or in different plants.
flower and separate its reproductive
Could you identify the anther and
parts. Study the various parts of a
the filament of a stamen? [Fig. 12.9 (a)].
stamen and pistil.
Anther contains pollen grains which
The flowers which contain either
produce male gametes. A pistil consists
only the pistil or only the stamens are
of stigma, style and ovary. The ovary
called unisexual flowers. The flowers
contains one or more ovules. The
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which contain both stamens and pistil
female gamete or the egg is formed in
are called bisexual flowers. Corn,
an ovule [Fig. 12.9 (b)]. In sexual
papaya and cucumber produce
reproduction a male and a female
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unisexual flowers, whereas mustard,
gamete fuse to form a zygote.
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rose and petunia have bisexual flowers.
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Boojho wants to know how the
Anther male gamete in the pollen grain
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Filament
Pollination
Generally pollen grains have a tough
Ovary
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(b) Pistil
(a) Self-pollination (b) Cross-pollination
Fig. 12.9 Reproductive parts Fig. 12.10 Pollination in flower
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away pollen on their bodies. Some of
the pollen lands on the stigma of a flower
of the same kind. The transfer of pollen
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from the anther to the stigma of a flower (a)
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is called pollination. If the pollen lands
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on the stigma of the same flower it is (b)
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called self-pollination. When the pollen Fig. 12.12 (a) Section of an apple, (b) Almond
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of a flower lands on the stigma of another
flower of the same plant, or that of a gametes (to form a zygote) is called
different plant of the same kind, it is fertilisation (Fig. 12.11). The zygote
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Pollen tube
seeds develop from the ovules. The seed
Zygote
formation contains an embryo enclosed in a
protective seed coat.
Some fruits are fleshy and juicy such
as mango, apple and orange. Some fruits
are hard like almonds and walnuts
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(a) (b)
12.4 SEED DISPERSAL
no
Fig. 12.11 Fertilisation (Zygote formation) In nature same kind of plants grow at
different places. This happens because
Fertilisation seeds are dispersed to different places.
The cell which results after fusion of Sometimes after a walk through a forest
the gametes is called a zygote. The or a field or a park, you may have found
process of fusion of male and female seeds or fruits sticking to your clothes.
138 SCIENCE
Did you try to observe how these seeds (b)], light seeds of grasses or hairy seeds
were clinging to your clothes? of aak (Madar) and hairy fruit of
What do you think will happen if all sunflower [Fig. 12.14 (a), (b)], get blown
seeds of a plant were to fall at the same off with the wind to far away places.
place and grow there? There would be Some seeds are dispersed by water. These
severe competition for sunlight, water, fruits or seeds usually develop floating
minerals and space. As a result the seeds ability in the form of spongy or fibrous
would not grow into healthy plants. outer coat as in coconut. Some seeds
Plants benefit by seed dispersal. It are dispersed by animals, especially
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prevents competition between the plant spiny seeds with hooks which get
and its own seedlings for sunlight, water attached to the bodies of animals and
and minerals. It also enables the plants are carried to distant places. Examples
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to invade new habitats for wider are Xanthium (Fig. 12.15) and Urena.
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distribution. Some seeds are dispersed when the
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Seeds and fruits of plants are carried
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away by wind, water and animals. are scattered far from the parent plant.
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Winged seeds such as those of This happens in the case of castor and
drumstick and maple [Fig. 12.13 (a) and balsam.
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Seed
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Wing
ed
Gametes Seed dispersal
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What you have learnt
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All organisms multiply or reproduce their own kind.
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In plants there are two modes of reproduction, asexual and sexual.
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There are several methods of asexual reproduction such as
fragmentation, budding, spore formation and vegetative propagation.
Sexual reproduction involves the fusion of male and female gametes.
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A flower may be unisexual with either the male or the female reproductive
parts.
A bisexual flower has both the male and the female reproductive parts.
The male gametes are found inside the pollen grains and female gametes
are found in the ovule.
Pollination is the process of transfer of pollen grains from the anther of
one flower to the stigma of the same or another flower.
Pollination is of two types, self-pollination and cross-pollination. In
self-pollination, pollen grains are transferred from the anther to the
stigma of the same flower. In cross-pollination, pollen grains are
transferred from the anther of one flower to the stigma of another flower
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140 SCIENCE
Exercises
1. Fill in the blanks:
(a) Production of new individuals from the vegetative part of parent is
called_____________.
(b) A flower may have either male or female reproductive parts. Such
a flower is called_____________.
(c) The transfer of pollen grains from the anther to the stigma of the
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same or of another flower of the same kind is known as
_____________.
(d) The fusion of male and female gametes is termed as _____________.
(e) Seed dispersal takes place by means of _____________,
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_____________ and _____________.
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2. Describe the different methods of asexual reproduction. Give examples.
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3. Explain what you understand by sexual reproduction.
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4. State the main difference between asexual and sexual reproduction.
5. Sketch the reproductive parts of a flower.
6. Explain the difference between self-pollination and cross-pollination.
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(b) The process of fusion of the male and the female gametes is called
(i) fertilisation (ii) pollination
(iii) reproduction (iv) seed formation
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(i) stem (ii) leaves
(iii) roots (iv) flower
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Extended Learning Activities and Projects
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1. Make your own cactus garden by collecting pieces cut from different
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kinds of cacti. Grow the variety in one single flat container or in
separate pots.
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2. Visit a fruit market and collect as many local fruits as possible. If many
fruits are not available, you can collect tomatoes and cucumbers (these
are fruits, though we use them as vegetables). Make drawings of the
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different fruits. Split the fruits and examine the seeds within. Look for
any special characteristics in the fruits and their seeds. If possible visit
the website:
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www.saps.plantsci.cam.ac.uk/fscfruit/dispersal.pdf
You can visit a library also to learn about this.
3. Think of ten different fruit-bearing plants. Remember that many
vegetables are also fruits of the plants. Discuss with your teacher,
parents, farmers, fruit growers and agricultural experts (if available
nearby) and find out the manner of their dispersal. Present your data
in the form of a table as shown below:
S. No. Name of fruit- Agent through which Part of or seed which
bearing plant seeds are dispersed helps in dispersal
1.
2.
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3.
4. Suppose there is one member of a particular kind of organism in a
no
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